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100 Days – Week of Inspiration – Featured Quilt 6

Sometimes, inspiration can come from more than one source. Today’s featured quilt “New York Skyline” by Jessica Blomquist has two definite inspirations. As the name implies it was inspired by the skyline of New York City as well as Denyse Schmidt’s quilts.

In Jessica’s words:

“I just started quilting (and sewing for that matter) in 2010. My mother and grandmother have quilted for decades, but I never was interested in learning how to quilt. My grandmother bought me a sewing machine as a wedding present and I decided that I wanted to learn how to use it. I thought a quilt could be an easy first project.

My “New York Skyline” quilt was the third quilt that I made. I googled ideas for quilts and fell in love with modern quilting and especially the work of Denyse Schmidt. I really like the concept of using only solid fabrics in quilts. I had recently moved to Los Angeles from New York City and I missed the city so much. I decided to make a quilt in honor of the city I missed and also using Denyse’s “Drunk Love 2-Tone” style as inspiration.”

"New York Skyline" Quilt by Jessica Blomquist

“It was the skyline of New York that really inspired this quilt. The shapes of the buildings leave beautiful footprints on the island. The grey fabric has sheen to it reminiscent of the steel and lights of Manhattan. Water envelopes New York without overpowering the beauty of the city, similarly the blue border emphasizes the quilt top. The style of the quilt also represents New York. New York is contemporary, innovative, powerful, and loud like modern quilt making. New York is also rooted in tradition and long-established like traditional quilt making. This is my ode to a city that I love.”

Inspiration for Jessica Blomquist's "New York Skyline" Quilt

“The quilt is actually made from black and grey sheets from IKEA. I was a new quilter, I didn’t have a fabric stash yet! I wanted each block to be unique, but I ran out of ideas. I ended up making several of the blocks a second time but switched the colors.”